Reading Assignment 3

Chapter 3 (The Positivist School: Individual/Biological Perspectives)

Points Possible: 20

Deliverable Length: 3-4 pages

Due: Saturday, September 11 at 11:55pm

Answer any two questions (10 points each):

1.  Fully discuss the positivist school of criminology. Include the following points: the importance Lombroso as the ”father” of the school; the assumptions about society, crime, and punishment (especially the emphases on determinism and treatment/rehabilitation.

2.  It is often argued that Lombroso approach (phrenology/atavism) to the study of crime is technically not a theory, but more accurately described as a set of race and gender stereotypes that cannot be tested. Give your own opinion of this controversy: do you think Lombroso was sexist and racist? Is there anything in this theory that is worth continued study?

3.  Discuss the significance of Frances Alice Kellor’s research on women criminals.